Revisiting the 3 major injuries of Russell Westbrook's NBA career so far
Los Angeles Lakers superstar Russell Westbrook is known as one of the most competitive players in the entire NBA. With a fearless playing style and elite explosion, Westbrook has been an absolute joy for basketball fans throughout his entire career. For a player like Russell Westbrook, he's become so special because of his quickness and speed on the floor. Although Westbrook is listed at 6'3" he has the explosiveness to attack the basket with bad intentions, which has made him one of the most exciting players to watch in the NBA.
But with that explosiveness comes some wear and tear. Unfortunately, Westbrook has dealt with a lengthy number of injuries over the last 13-years in the NBA. There's no denying that when Westbrook is healthy, he's one of the most dangerous players in the NBA in the open floor. But as the years have piled up, so have the injuries. Let's take a look at some of the more notable injuries that Russell Westbrook has dealt with during his career in the NBA.
#3 2013, First knee surgery
During the 2013 Western Conference playoffs, Russell Westbrook suffered a knee injury while trying to call a timeout against the Houston Rockets. Patrick Beverley made a move to reach for the ball, but he unfortunately fell right into Westbrook's right knee. An MRI would eventually reveal a torn meniscus in his right knee, which would force Westbrook to undergo a surgical procedure. The timing of the injury couldn't have been worse, as the Thunder found themselves right in the thick of the Western Conference Playoffs. Oklahoma City would go on to beat the Rockets in that series, but the loss of their rising star would prove to be crucial in the next round against the Memphis Grizzlies. After suffering an injury during the playoffs, many wondered if Westbrook would be ready for the upcoming regular season.
#2 2013, Swelling on the knee
After suffering a knee injury during the 2013 NBA Playoffs, many wondered if Russell Westbrook was going to be ready to return during the early portion of the upcoming regular season. After working relentlessly to get himself back into game shape, Westbrook found himself active and playing again for the Oklahoma City Thunder after missing the first three games of the year. Everything was fine as Westbrook eventually went on to play in 25 games before a setback occurred.
After posting a triple-double against the New York Knicks on Christmas Day, Wesbrook expressed that something felt off and that there was swelling in his knee. He would go on to have arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, which led to Westbrook missing the next 28 games. After continuing to take strides forward in his production during the previous two seasons, Westbrook had seen his numbers fall across the board. It created some caution with a young point guard who was starting to have knee problems, but that would prove to be a small setback for the competitive floor general.
#1 2014, Fractured hand
The previous season was a bit of a rough patch for the talented star, as he went on to play in a career-low of just 46 games. After dealing with a number of knee injuries, it looked as if Russell Westbrook was finally ready to have himself a full year without any setbacks. Just two games later, Westbrook suffered another injury, this time to his hand. He would require surgery to repair a fractured second metarapal in his shooting hand. It was unfortunate timing for Westbrook and Oklahoma City Thunder fans as fellow superstar Kevin Durant was also out with an injury.
In all, Westbrook would go on to miss the next 14 games. The good news for Thunder fans was that their point guard would bounce back and have a fantastic season. He went on to finish the season averaging 28.1 points per game and it was the last "scare" Westbrook would have to deal with injury-wise for the foreseeable future.